VideoBrains May Epilogue

Ever just not finished a project, or perhaps you’ve got something on the go right now, or maybe it’s still swirling around your head as a wonderful idea? That was the theme of VideoBrains May: Prototype, all those unfinished or unreleased little works we haven’t finished yet or just haven’t got around to making perfect. Well, and there was a talk on folklore and the genitals of yokai. Average VideoBrains really.

Siobhan Gibson was our first speaker, and spoke how just how she started making games, from the most basic proofs of concept to where she is nowadays. One of the reasons she gave it a shot was just to see if Twine really was as easy as people said it was: it is.

There was also some homework given! Siobhan wanted people to just make something simple using Flickgame, and Alex Facey did exactly that! He made a short Twin Peaks game, which you can play right here. If you’re inspired to make something yourself, please send it our way!

This was followed up by Andrew Armstrong, who looked at architecture in games, and how the relationship between the places we live, visit, and grow up in can influence us. It’s a talk that would be right at home alongside our previous resident speaker Hannah Nicklin’s series!

"Your game is a process evolving over time, not a fixed destination" – @Abashizali

— VideoBrains (@VideoBrains) May 24, 2016

It wasn’t just Rob Morgan’s fourth talk as our resident speaker, but we also celebrated his birthday at VideoBrains May! It might be a little late to wish him a belated happy birthday, but we won’t stop you.

Thanks to @Thairyn @_JakeTucker @VideoBrains for a birthday surprise. If I sounded choked up in my talk, that's why pic.twitter.com/mkHrN5LqVx

— Rob Morgan (@AboutThisLater) May 24, 2016

His topic for May was The Pathetic Fallacy, and included supposedly awkward eye contact (which VideoBrains attendees seemed to love). He also had a wonderful jacket this month.

"TV Tropes: the stack overflow of storytelling" omfg @AboutThisLater :') #videobrains

— Siobhan Gibson ? (@siobhangx) May 24, 2016

Thryn Henderson brought us back to VideoBrains May’s theme with her talk This World Is ____, a look into unfinished (but not, necessarily, incomplete) games that people showed her. Art is never finished, only abandoned, but sometimes the unfinished works can be just as enjoyable as the ones deemed ‘complete’.

https://twitter.com/seanFsmith/status/735190594176323584

Cloud-based computing, not quite OnLive, but the idea that games can use a cloud-based network of computers to do all the taxing stuff for you in a game. That was the topic of Will Overgard’s talk, which even included a little audience interaction, with a joyously optimistic view of the possibilities in the future of cloud-based computing.

Finally, Alex Davis took to the stage, with a perhaps rather NSFW talk on folklore. Sounds innocent: did you know tanuki have mahoossive scrotums? Or that kappa (not the Twitch emote, please) like to steal your soul from where the sun don’t shine? Didn’t think so.

#Videobrains new game idea: mmo kappa dating sim, you win if the kappa takes ur ass soul @VideoBrains

— Nina Martin (@zeus_japonicus) May 24, 2016

Certainly a unique array of talks. That’s the joy of VideoBrains, eh?

VideoBrains June has been and gone, but VideoBrains July: The Movies tickets are now available! It features Helen Gould, Alex Hern, Darren Daley, Hannah Dwan, Martin Hollis, and Rob Morgan’s final talk as resident speaker (aww). Don’t worry, though because we’ve announced our next resident speaker: the fantastic, the inimitable, the creator of Chekov’s Penis, Alice Bell! She’ll be joining us as resident speaker in August.

We’d love it if you brought a friend along to VideoBrains, and Endlife Studios have made a great video to show off just how great VideoBrains is. Show us to your friends! With this, we bid you adieu (at least, until the next Epilogue…)